JEDDAH, 26 July 2005 — It was a simple question with a simple answer that finally broke Abdul Nabi’s fortitude and “won” Khaled Al-Abbass Al-Telmesani his appellate case against Indian laborer Rizwan Abdul Nabi.
There was no presentation of facts nor was there any reviewing of evidence, just the judge’s question: “Is your sponsor here?”
When Abdul Nabi said, “No,” the judge ordered a continuance. The new court date has been set for four months from now, but to Abdul Nabi, it may as well be never as he has decided to cut his losses and return to India with nothing.
Al-Telmesani’s failure to appear was predicted by Abdul Nabi one day before they were both scheduled to appear in Riyadh’s appellate court.
During the first trial in Dammam, which he lost, Al-Telmesani only showed up at the final hearing after successfully postponing the matter at least twice by simply not showing up in court.
“The whole case in Dammam took seven months from beginning to end to complete, but it could have ended much sooner had my sponsor simply shown up when he was supposed to.
“It had cost me all my personal savings to stay and fight that case. When it ended, Al-Telmesani was supposed to pay me SR12,008 and send me home. When he filed the appeal in Riyadh however, I was forced to stay and had to borrow money from friends to pay for food, shelter, and transportation. By staying here with no source of income, I am falling deeper and deeper into debt.
“Now he is going to push the limits with the appellate courts and do the same thing, so that I just give up on the money. With the huge number of cases pending, every time he doesn’t show up means that I am forced to stay an extra four months,” Abdul Nabi told Arab News.
Overcome by emotion, he handed the telephone to a friend who had accompanied him to court and was present when the final blow to his morale was delivered. “This is the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. With no way of legally supporting himself for another four months, what else can Rizwan do but give up, cut his losses and go home? Everyday that he stays in Saudi Arabia costs him not just money, but grief. Where is he going to live and how is he going to eat for the next four months? Suppose he stays for another four months and Al-Telmesani doesn’t show up again, then will it take another four months again? It is a sad day for all foreign laborers in the Kingdom,” Abdul Nabi’s friend told Arab News.
“I have decided to just give up on ever seeing any of the money I was awarded by the Dammam Labor Court. This ordeal has gone on for far too long and my family in India and I have suffered long enough. It’s hopeless,” a despondent Abdul Nabi said when he came back on the line.
Al-Telmesani when contacted by Arab News claimed he had no idea that he was supposed to show up for the appeals case that he, himself filed in Riyadh.
